Chapter 318

By order of the Commandant, take command of the camp; everyone stay where they are, violators will be executed without exception!

The soldiers rudely stormed into each barracks, quickly taking control of the soldiers inside, and announced Chen Wuji's military order: rebels—kill.

There were rebels, and not a few.

They didn't raise any big waves, and were quickly hacked down to the ground.

Under the escort of the Chen Family's Two Bulls, Chen Wuji walked into the slaughter-ridden, chaotic camp together with Xu Zengyi.

Qin Zan Hong did not accompany them inside; she said this was not something the Imperial City Department should concern itself with, and she hid her figure in the darkness beside the street, clutching her long sword.

"According to Mr. Xu's opinion, do I still need these provincial troops?" Chen Wuji asked.

Compared to these provincial troops long corrupt with various bad habits, he actually would prefer ordinary able-bodied men who have never held a weapon.

Writing what one wants on a blank sheet of paper is far easier than trying to turn a already smeared, messy sheet into what one wants.

"We need them!" Xu Zengyi said.

He gave Chen Wuji a deep look and gave his reason: "Under the Commandant's command, the main force is the Chen Clan Troops, plus the Qian Family's retainers and the Tianchi Pass Provincial Troops. The Qian Family is suspected of heavily betting on the Commandant, and the Tianchi Pass Provincial Troops, having been subdued by the Commandant, have a record of disobeying court orders."

"These three may seem separate, but upon close examination they all count as the Commandant's core retainers. If we don't mix in some sand to disrupt this neat arrangement, some people will think too much."

Chen Wuji had indeed considered this issue, but he always felt it was somewhat superfluous.

"Just barely a thousand people—is it worth doing this?" Chen Wuji asked.

When Chen Bushi returned, he also brought over a hundred clan troops; adding these people together barely reached the threshold of a thousand. With such a force, suspecting him of rebellion is somewhat excessive.

It's simply overestimating him.

"Worth it!" Xu Zengyi said firmly, "Under great fame there are no false warriors; hasn't the Commandant already proved this to them? In the battle at Shenxian Ling, the Commandant defeated the strong with weakness, the many with few, causing the six-thousand-strong Canlang Qiang army to be utterly annihilated—can such a result not be described as terrifying?"

Chen Wuji said in a low voice: "I think I shouldn't enter the Court's legal scrutiny so quickly."

"Yes, but Yunan is ultimately not something the Commandant alone can decide." Xu Zengyi said with a light smile, "Moreover, in this mixed land of fish and dragons, many forces have their eyes placed; the battle at Shenxian Ling will sooner or later end up on the desks of those big figures, as long as they pay attention."

"Then I'll listen to you." Chen Wuji had no choice but to say.

Actually, he wanted to say, given the Chen family's long history, if someone wanted to find fault, there would already be ample reason; whether this bit of sand is mixed in or not seems meaningless.

But Xu Zengyi insisted on this point, so let's do it.

Anyway, it's not overly troublesome.

"Commandant, we've caught a few ringleaders!"

Qian Fugui brought a group of soldiers and delivered this group of people to Chen Wuji's presence.

"Commandant, these guys all seem well-off; just now a bastard actually offered to buy me off with five thousand taels of silver to turn against you—I'm trying to see who it is." Qian Fugui shouted excitedly, turned and searched through the crowd, then brought a middle-aged officer bound with rope to Chen Wuji's face.

He kicked that person to the ground, and Qian Fugui shouted: "Commandant, it's this old brat!"

"Introduce yourself." Chen Wuji asked indifferently.

That man's expression was haughty; he abruptly turned his head aside: "I won't speak with the likes of pigs and dogs."

Chen Wuji slightly lowered his head: "Rebellion is a serious crime; you wouldn't want your nine clans to jointly hold a funeral, would you?"

"I didn't rebel; you're slandering me!" the middle-aged officer glared, his emotions instantly flaring.

"Insolence toward superiors is tantamount to treason!"

The middle-aged officer was choked hard: "If you spare my family, I'll speak."

Chen Wuji smiled faintly: "Then who are the pigs and dogs?"

"... " The middle-aged officer stared blankly at Chen Wuji for a moment, then grit his teeth.

"Me!" he said.

Chen Wuji glanced indifferently: "I didn't hear that."

"I am the pigs and dogs, I am the pigs and dogs; I beg you, sir, not to make things difficult for my family!" the middle-aged officer suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs; from the excessive force, veins bulged on his neck like ancient tree roots.

"Your humble servant Ding Wenzi, I am the Yunan Provincial Troops Brigade Commander; Liang Renjie promised me ten thousand taels of silver and the position of Guoyi Commandant, asking me to help him control the provincial troops and assassinate the Commandant; I agreed. But we have not yet acted, and the Commandant has already come killing—whether this counts as insubordination I don't know; I earnestly ask the Commandant to consider carefully and give us a chance to redeem ourselves through merit."

Chen Wuji turned his head to ask Xu Zengyi: "How do I hear his words as a threat to me?"

"I feel the same." Xu Zengyi nodded seriously.

Chen Wuji chuckled lightly: "Brigade Commander Ding, it seems you truly think your nine clans are superfluous, right? I'm the type who listens to advice; if you have that thought, I can help."

"Sir, you've misunderstood," Ding Wenzi suddenly threw himself to the ground, kowtowing repeatedly with loud thuds: "Your humble servant only asks the Commandant for a chance to redeem ourselves through merit; we may have harbored insubordinate intentions, but we haven't actually acted yet."

Chen Wuji was amused by the remark: "If you succeeded, it wouldn't be called rebellion but rather 'the victor becomes king, the loser becomes bandit.' I actually have a soft heart and don't want to get involved in entanglements, but you say why you're so keen on falling out with your nine clans."

"It's fine, I understand your meaning; when we go down, wait a bit, they'll be here soon."

Ding Wenzi suddenly raised his head; his eyes, filled with bloodshot veins, were full of panic and bewilderment.

"Commandant, your humble servant doesn't mean that!" he shouted urgently.

Chen Wuji waved his hand: "You do mean that."

Grabbing his two soldiers, they quickly pulled him to the side and smashed several blows to Ding Wenzi's mouth to prevent him from making noise again.

Chen Wuji looked around at the others: "Who is Liang Renjie?"

After the captured officers had been silent for a while, they all unconsciously looked toward the person behind them.

"Come here, you bastard, you still want to slip through!" Qian Fugui again personally stepped forward, grabbed Liang Renjie's collar with one hand, and threw him in front of Chen Wuji.

This man is somewhat ugly, with a typical big pancake face; on his left cheek is a large mole, overgrown with hair; it's said that people with such features tend to be rather ruthless.

Chen Wuji had never been entirely sure of that saying, but today it served as a verification.

"Lord Liang, hearing your name is no substitute for meeting you!"

Chen Wuji greeted him politely, then asked: "I have a small question I'd like to ask you: why do you think stepping on my head would let you stand in the Commandant's position?"